Your Mess is Mine
by LemonStar
Summary: ..Daryl/Beth.. AU - no zombies. From the "Cornerstone" universe. Daryl and Beth are both looking to have a forever with the other but both have resigned themselves to ache for something silently rather than talk about it with one another and maybe finally find their happily-ever-after together.
1. Chapter 1

**I still have not decided if this will be a** **simple one-shot or possibly a two-shot.**

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…

They had been living in the trailer in the woods together for over a year now and it had been a good year. The best year of his life, Daryl didn't doubt.

At first, he was worried that maybe they would be spending too much time together – working at the same garage and living together in such a small space – and eventually, one of them would explode from the annoyance of being together all of the time but that possible conflict never arose because the truth was, they did have their time apart. He'd go hunting with his brother for a couple of days or she would visit her best friend in Atlanta for the weekend or she'd go to her daddy's farm for the day or he'd hang out with his best friend at his house for the afternoon. And Daryl realized that even if they _did_ spend too much time together, he wouldn't really care because he had never really been that fond of people before but Beth was the exception and he found himself wanting to spend as much time with her as he could.

The trailer used to be just a place where Daryl slept and ate his meals and hid away from everyone and the rest of the world but with Beth there, it was a home now. _Their_ home. A home glowing warmly with light and the smell of butter cream hanging in the air. She almost always had fresh flowers on the kitchen table and she had introduced him to decorative throw pillows both on the bed and couch. He had never had a home like it before; had never even had a home at all.

Outside, they had a pen where their sheep, Harvey, lived and they never had to worry about the grass getting too long around them with him roaming around, eating it all up. Beth had planted flowers and had started a small vegetable garden – just tomatoes and green beans at the moment, though she was talking about growing more variety the next season – and Daryl had built a fence around it for her.

Inside, he had built himself a bookshelf because he was still reading through all of the books kids read in high school that he, himself, had never gotten a chance to read until now and he had built Beth a new stool for her keyboard, which she sat on almost every night, playing and writing her own songs and filling the trailer with her sweet voice.

If they didn't go to his brother's or her daddy's for dinner, they cooked for themselves in the trailer's small kitchenette area and they sat down each night across from one another at the small table and ate and she chattered away with him making the occasional comment but mostly, he just sat there and listened to every word she said, looking at her and not wanting to miss a single syllable.

The trailer was small for one person and downright cramped with two but they made it work and rearranged and adjusted and made it work just as they did with everything else. The bathroom was downright miniscule with no room for anything and Beth kept a plastic bin beneath their bed filled with everything that couldn't be held in the tiny medicine cabinet behind the mirror. And the bedroom was just big enough for their bed and one dresser, which they shared. She got the top two drawers and he got the bottom two and the closet, as well, as shared with his flannel shirts all hanging in with all of her dresses and cardigan sweaters.

He, sometimes, thought that it was too small and maybe she would want to move back to the big farmhouse where she used to live with her pops but Beth just smiled and kissed him and told him that the trailer wasn't small. It was _cozy_ and Daryl assumed that there was a difference between the two words but he didn't know it.

All he knew was every time he looked at Beth, she looked downright happy and he knew he had never been this happy before in his entire life.

…

Beth had another bin underneath their bed filled with toys for when his nephew, Hank, would come to visit. Merle's wife, Annie, insisted that they go out sometimes without the baby – "To remind ourselves that we're still a couple", Annie said and Merle had made a face, not understanding that at all but going along with it because he figured it meant he would get laid at the end of it – and Daryl and Beth would babysit the baby at the trailer for the night.

"You are just the sweetest baby in the entire world," Beth would always tell him, holding the pudgy baby in her arms and Hank gurgled and tugged on her braid.

She would feed him his dinner of strained carrots – "It tastes just as disgustin' as it looks," Merle had informed them – and then clean him up and sit with him on the floor where his blanket was spread out and she played with him and his toys.

Daryl sat with them and always found himself having just as much fun playing with the toys as Hank did because it didn't matter that he was getting closer to forty. He had never had toys growing up and it wasn't as if Hank had a ton but he had enough and the toys just showed to everyone that Hank Dixon was already so different then his old man or uncle. Hank giggled and clapped his hands every time Daryl built a tower of blocks and then knocked it over with a dinosaur or his fire truck and he would build it up again so Hank would be able to knock it over next.

When they babysat, Daryl would sometimes find himself watching Beth. He knew they wouldn't be able to have kids of their own. The years she spent starving herself nearly to death had permanently damaged parts of her body and she would probably never be able to get pregnant.

They didn't talk about it. Daryl was fine with never having kids; had never even thought of having kids and he was more than happy just being an uncle to Hank and any other kids Merle and Annie might have later. He could care less if Beth could or never could have kids. He wasn't with Beth because of that anyway.

But he didn't know how Beth felt about it. He had never asked. He didn't really know how to approach that with her and she definitely wasn't bringing it up. He didn't know if she wanted kids or if she was fine with the possibility of never having any of her own. He didn't know what she thought about any of it and he watched her when she was with Hank to see if she had any hint of longing or sadness in her eyes.

He never saw any though. He just saw her smiling warmly and kissing the baby's round cheeks and singing him soft songs and even after Merle and Annie came to pick Hank up to take him home, when it was just the two of them again, Beth was still smiling.

…

"You ever gonna ask her to marry you?" Rick asked one afternoon when they had gone to Rhee's Pizza for a couples of slices for lunch.

Daryl didn't even react to the question anymore; so use to everyone asking him that in some form or another about him and Beth. Apparently, two people couldn't be together for a year without people expecting to hear wedding bells.

"She don't wanna get married," he shook his head.

"She say that?" Rick looked at him from across the table with a raised eyebrow.

No, she didn't say that but it wasn't as if he had asked her about it. It was another of those things that he didn't talk with her about. She gave him no hint that she was looking to get married and Daryl didn't even know if he wanted to get married either. He loved Beth. Had never loved anyone or anything more in this world than he loved Beth. And he just imagined himself being with her for as long as he lived but he didn't know if that meant they had to get married.

"She don't have to say it." Daryl shot him a frown. "Why the hell would she wanna marry me? Girl could have anyone in this world. Miracle 'nough she's stayed with me this long."

And that was something he believed deep in his belly. He loved Beth and he knew that she loved him but he didn't know what was keeping her with him and a part of him was just not expecting her to stay with him forever. It'd probably kill him but he wouldn't be all that surprised if she looked at him one day and told him she was leaving. It wasn't like he was giving her anything that would make her want to stay.

And he already knew that he couldn't put a ring on her finger and bind her to him for the rest of their lives just because he was afraid of her leaving even though he did know one thing and that was without Beth, he wouldn't have a life at all.

…

Her daddy said she could use the laundry room whenever she wanted but most times, she saved up their quarters and took their laundry bag to the Laundromat in town. She felt if she was old enough to live with her boyfriend, she was old enough to do their laundry without relying on her father for it.

Daryl swung the bag up in the back of the pickup truck and drove them to town and hefted it over his shoulder, carrying it inside. She had a small bottle of detergent and she claimed two washing machines for themselves. Daryl stood next to her as she began separating their whites from their colors and he always made her laugh because before her, he had never separated his clothes when doing laundry and no matter how many times she showed him, he just didn't seem to get a handle on it.

"Throw those in with the whites, Daryl," she said as he was holding a pair of her yellow panties, about to drop those in the color washing machine.

"Yellow's a color," he frowned at her.

"It's a lighter color, though, so I throw those in with the whites. Same with these," she said, holding up a pair of her light purple panties.

"You need to start buyin' some plain white underwear," he muttered and she laughed, pouring a cap of detergent into each machine.

A part of her wanted to tease him and ask how he had ever survived before her but she didn't because he had survived just fine before this with her. He had had a terrible childhood but he had pulled himself up and had made a life for himself; a good life and it had been good before her and it would be good after her.

After her. She didn't like to think about that but sometimes, the thought would creep into her mind and take root and she wouldn't be able to get rid of it for days. She had been with Daryl for a year and she couldn't imagine not being with him. So much of her life had now become entwined with his, she couldn't be sure she would be able to have a whole life without him again. And she knew that wasn't good because a person shouldn't become so dependent on another person like that but she looked at Daryl and could so easily see having a forever with this man.

They never talked about it though and Beth never felt brave enough to be the first to mention it. Daryl had said more than once that she was the strongest girl he knew but she wasn't. At all. Because there was so much in this world and in her life that scared her. And Daryl Dixon just absolutely terrified her because there was just so much she didn't know and it drove her crazy if she sat down and thought about it. She wanted answers but never wanted to be the one to ask the questions so she knew she had no one to blame but herself.

There was some fishing show on the television bolted to the wall that Daryl watched as she read a book in the chair beside him and they waited for their clothes to wash. She was reading one of those silly light books of the heroine moving somewhere new and starting a new life for herself and meeting the man of her dreams when she walks her dog in the park. She loved books like that. Not exactly challenging but she was guaranteed a happy ending and sometimes, she couldn't ask for more than that.

Beth turned the page and then leaned into Daryl, resting her head on his shoulder and bringing her knees up to hug them to her chest.

"You a'right?" He asked her when she released a soft sigh.

"Mm-hmmm," she answered truthfully and tilted her head up, finding him already looking at her. "Just thinking."

"'bout what?" His eyes were intent on her and she smiled a little.

She absolutely loved his eyes. She remembered her first morning at the garage when Dale had introduced her to the other mechanics. She had smiled and looked at them all but her eyes had lingered on Daryl the longest – Daryl and his stormy blue eyes and he had been staring at her, too.

She reminded herself now, in this moment, that he had been staring at her as long as she had been staring at him. This wasn't one-sided. He had been the one to ask her to stay with him in the trailer in the first place. She knew he loved her and wanted her and she told herself that there was nothing wrong with the way she was feeling.

"I'll never be able to have babies," she said rather suddenly and it wasn't what she wanted to start this conversation with but it was one of those things that they never talked about that _had_ to be talked about.

She saw the surprise flash in Daryl's eyes before he was able to quickly wipe it away.

"I know that," he said in a softer voice that she had heard him use in the woods while hunting.

She never took her eyes from him. "And that doesn't bother you?"

His shrug was immediate; as if he had been waiting for her to ask him that and he had had his answer ready this whole time. "Why would it? Never wanted kids."

Beth knew he was telling the truth. Daryl was almost impossible to read but after a year with him, she was better at it than anyone. And even if she couldn't read him, she knew he was telling the truth because Daryl Dixon never told a lie. He never saw the point in it. What he said was always what he meant.

She watched as he swallowed as if nervous and glanced down to his hands before lifting his eyes back to her.

"It bother you?" He then asked in a low, gruff tone.

She shook her head. "No," she answered truthfully. "I learned to accept it a long time ago." She then managed to give him a small smile and added in a voice just above a whisper, "A woman doesn't have to have a baby to be happy."

"'s true," he then said quietly, almost distracted, and rubbed his chin. He looked at her and gave another half shrug. "You always got me. We both know I act like a baby sometimes," he smirked a little and when she broke into a soft laugh, she saw his smirk grow wider into a smile and she stretched her neck up, kissing him.

 _You always got me_.

…

She liked her job. It wasn't exactly what she saw herself doing when she was a little girl and imagining herself being a ballerina or a famous singer but it was a good job and she liked it and she was happy. This life she had for herself, it might not have been what she had thought she would have for herself one day but it was what she wanted for herself now and that was more than enough.

Dale was so kind to her and the other guys treated her like she was their friend and more than once, all of the guys had said that without her, this garage couldn't run. They made her feel like she was important, like she mattered, and she wondered if they had any idea how much that meant to her.

It wasn't necessarily a difficult job but it could get hectic and no two days were alike and Beth was good at it. And each night, when the garage closed, she cleaned up the office and then would climb onto the back of Daryl's motorcycle and wrap her arms around his waist and he would take them home. _Home_.

There were three things in this world that made her smile without fail. Harvey, their sheep, Daryl and their home. Their trailer with the yellow lace curtains hanging over the windows and the blue and white quilt on their bed and the vase of wildflowers on their table. It was their home and it smelled like them and was warm and cozy and it was all theirs. Their own little piece of heaven deep in the woods and she hadn't seen the whole world but she knew that their trailer was her favorite spot in the world. Home – and Daryl – was all she needed to be truly happy.

All she wanted for the rest of her life was their home and Daryl.

…

Daryl moved strongly on top of her, pumping his hips between her thighs, entering her with deep strokes, and Beth didn't understand – even after all of these times being intimate together – how he could move with just the right amount of hard that she craved and yet, kiss her so softly, it made her heart twist in her chest.

Her legs were wrapped around his waist and her nails were digging in his back, giving him new scratches to mix in with his old scars. She moaned softly, his name over and over again and pleas for him to keep going, and her hips lifted against his, meeting his thrusts as his head dropped down to her shoulder, grunting and panting in her ear. Her fingers moved into his hair, pushing it back, pulling on his head until he got the signal of what she wanted. He lifted his head and lowered his mouth to hers, kissing her deeply, making her moan all over again.

She broke apart with a sharp cry and arch of her back and Daryl held her tightly, pounding into her faster until his own end was reached and he shuddered as he came before collapsing on top of her before he could catch himself. But she didn't want him to be anywhere else and she wrapped her arms around him, holding him on top of her, feeling both of their hearts rapidly beating, trying to return to normal as they both tried to remember how to breathe.

"I love you, Beth," Daryl murmured in her ear and if all of her bones already hadn't been gone from her body, Beth would have felt them melt away then as she always did whenever he said those words to her; especially when he said those words first.

She tightened her arms around him. "I love you, too," she said and looked up at him as he lifted his head to look down to her face, his eyes falling into hers. She gave him a soft smile as she brushed his hair out of his face. "I'm going to love you forever," she then added and something passed through his eyes at her words. Something like a storm cloud, darkening and changing the landscape and for a second, Beth wondered if she had just said something completely wrong. She didn't know why it would be though. It was the truth.

"Le's get married," Daryl suddenly said, blurting it out gruffly.

Beth's eyes widened. "What?" She sputtered and let out a slight laugh because she didn't know what else to do right then. She looked at him and he looked completely serious though and she felt her heart skipping beats within her ribcage. "What?" She asked again, this time in almost a whisper.

"Right now. Le's just go and get married," Daryl said and he pushed himself off of her, sitting on his knees, and Beth sat up as well, her eyes never leaving his and she was cold as she always was and she lifted the blanket up around her body. Daryl was staring at her, his eyes intent and never looking away from hers. "I wanna marry you, Beth," he said in a quiet voice.

"You do?" She whispered and she wasn't sure why but she felt like crying.

"Did you mean it? Are you gonna love me forever?" He asked.

"Of course," she didn't hesitate in her answer. "But Daryl…" she stopped herself and swallowed a thickness clawing at her throat. "Are you?" She was almost afraid to ask but she had to. Her stomach was clenching and her heart was racing and his eyes still hadn't left her. She knew the answer and knew she would never doubt it but still, she supposed she just had to actually hear it.

"Am I what? Gonna love you forever?" He asked and she nodded, swallowing again.

Daryl moved into her then, his hand on the back of her head, and he kissed her and it was hungry and soft all at the same time and her hands lifted to his cheeks.

"You really askin' me that?" He asked, barely lifting his lips from hers.

"Did you really wait this long to ask me to marry you?" She asked back, teasing, and he smirked back against her lips. "Yes," she whispered. "I'm really asking you that."

"Yeah, Beth." It was his turn to answer without hesitating. He then took a deep breath and stared into her eyes. "'ve been thinkin' 'bout this for a while now but I just haven' had a clue how to say it to you."

Beth felt more tears flood her eyes. She then felt like laughing and she did, light and soft, and she shook her head at herself. "Is that why you didn't ask me sooner?" She wondered.

"Wasn' sure you wanted me," he shrugged, trying to be casual about the whole thing but failing miserably at it. "Wasn' sure you wanted me and this trailer and everythin' that comes with being with me."

"With you? I think you forget who has more baggage between us," she tried to be light but Daryl could see past it.

"'s my baggage now, too," he said in a low voice and for a man who barely spoke ten sentences a day, he always knew the perfect thing to say.

The tears slipped down her cheeks then, no longer able to stop them, and she pulled on his hair, pulling on his head until their lips could meet once more.

And one kiss led to another and another and Beth felt Daryl lowering her to the bed again and she found herself on her back once more, his body hovering over hers and right then and there, she decided she wanted to spend her entire life right in that spot; right where she was and with no one else there except Daryl.

And she had already known that for a long time but now, she knew that that Daryl wanted that, too, without a doubt in her mind, that this was always the life she imagined for herself.

…

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 **Thank you so much for reading and please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I posted this a few days ago but I wound up deleting it because I wasn't happy with it at all and I wasn't even entirely sure if it was necessary or not. But I have reworked it a little and added a bit more to the end and have decided to post it for everyone who is interested in reading. I still don't know if I'm completely happy and satisfied with it but I couldn't let it go.**

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…

Beth had never been the sort have dreams of her wedding since she was a little girl. She had general ideas as to what she might maybe want if the day ever came where she did get married but nothing went past the broadest of plans.

There were apple trees on the farm, a small clump of them in the back of the house, and Beth always imagined maybe getting married standing underneath them if she didn't get married in a church. She knew Daryl would get married in the church if it was what she wanted but she didn't want to make him because Daryl wasn't a church kind of guy even if he went with her sometimes on Sundays. And she knew she didn't want one of those puffy white dresses but rather something simple; something she could possibly wear more than once in her life. And she knew she definitely wanted flowers in her hair instead of wearing a veil.

But that was all she knew.

She supposed a part of her had never thought that she would get married. Who on earth would want to marry her? With her still fragile health and all of her issues stretching out for miles, who would want to willingly tie themselves to her for the rest of their lives? Deep down, she never thought she was anything special enough to have anyone in her life who would want her.

But she met Daryl Dixon and they fell in love and he actually asked her to marry him. And honestly, she didn't care about the wedding and how it turned out. She was more excited for the actual marriage and being Daryl's wife. Beth Dixon. She smiled to herself sometimes when she said that to herself. Mrs. Beth Dixon. And she felt like she was a silly schoolgirl, writing her crush's name all over her notebooks except this was true. This was really happening. She and Daryl were getting married and she didn't need some huge ceremony to make that happen.

She and Daryl went over to Merle and Annie's every Thursday after work for dinner and Beth wondered if Annie was perhaps more excited for the wedding than she was. Beth was, of course, excited to be getting married to Daryl but Annie was downright ecstatic about the whole thing.

The Thursday a couple of weeks after Daryl and Beth had told them, they went over to their house and the instant Beth stepped inside, Annie was there, holding bridal magazines in her arms and eagerly telling Beth about all of the great stuff she found.

"Oh…" Beth did her best to be polite as Annie showed her possible tuxedos for the groomsmen to wear on page twenty-six.

"I ain't wearin' no damn monkey suit," Merle frowned.

"And do you know what your colors are going to be?" Annie asked. "You can have them wear ties and boutonnieres to match the colors," she explained, turning to another page in the magazine. "Now, if you're getting married in the fall, I know, I know. Orange is so cliché and expected but I think this faded orange is so beautiful."

Beth looked to Daryl then, her call for help desperate in her eyes, but Daryl just smirked a little and give a shrug. Beth narrowed her eyes at him then and he almost chuckled, his eyes moving to the can of beer Merle was handing to him.

"Actually, Annie…" Beth interrupted as gently as possible. "Daryl and I aren't going to have a wedding like… this," she swept her hand over the magazines.

Annie gasped then as if saying such a thing was horrifying to her. "What do you mean? What are you going to do instead?"

"Well, we haven't really talked about it," Beth said as she looked to Daryl again, his eyes settled on her, and she looked back to Annie. "Just something on my daddy's farm. Small, simple. Probably within the next couple of weeks."

"What?" Annie gasped again.

Merle broke into a grin at that. "Woman was plannin' on livin' vicariously through you, Beth," he explained.

Beth gave Annie a small smile, hoping that Annie wouldn't be too upset about the decision but a wedding like this was definitely not something she or Daryl wanted. She could hardly imagine Daryl standing in a tuxedo and just thinking about it actually almost made her want to giggle. She wondered if he would even wear a suit.

Merle and Annie had met through the prison pen-pal program and had exchanged letters for nearly a year before Annie finally gathered enough courage to visit him face-to-face. And just a few hours after his release, the two went to the courthouse and got married. Annie never got her big wedding and Annie was definitely the sort who had dreamt of having a big wedding since she was a little girl.

Annie looked to Beth now and gave a soft sigh. "Of course," she said with a slight nod. "I can't imagine either of these Dixon men in tuxedos anyway."

Beth smiled a bit wider at the thought, too. "I have been thinking though. If it's alright with you two, I was hoping to have Hank involved in the ceremony in some way. Maybe our ring bearer? You can have him wear a little suit, if you want."

Annie gasped then and the brightness returned to her face. "Yes!" She then swooped baby Hank up into her arms as he slobbered all over the head of his Brontosaurus dinosaur toy. "Merle, his first suit! Oh, he is going to be the cutest baby ever in a wedding! I think children's options are in this magazine."

She grabbed another magazine from the pile and was off again, this time, talking to Merle about all of the possibilities for baby Hank to wear and Merle's lips quickly turned down into a frown and his brow furrowed as he listened to her, arguing that no son of his was going to be dressed like some damn dandy.

Beth leaned into Daryl then. "Did you want to wear a tuxedo?" She asked him softly.

And Daryl just smirked a little before dropping his arm around her shoulders and taking a sip from his beer can.

…

Some days, Beth didn't even think about the wedding. She wasn't stressed or worried. It was almost as if marrying Daryl was one of those things that was going to happen and not that much thought or planning had to be put into it.

She had talked with her daddy about getting married underneath the apple trees and of course, Hershel had been more than happy about that, and he had volunteered speaking with Father Gabriel from their church to see about leading the ceremony. And in Beth's mind, she supposed that those were the two biggest things. Everything else could be seen to without stressing herself out over it and she didn't think any of it would take her that long at all.

And Daryl didn't seem to be thinking about the wedding at all. He worked at the garage and worked at home and went hunted and read and went about life as if nothing was different. And with Daryl clearly not stressing himself over anything, Beth didn't see why she had to.

She sat on the bed at the end of the day, writing in her journal, taking note of everything she had eaten. It wasn't something she necessarily liked doing but something she definitely had to do. She wrote down everything she had eaten that day and her current weight – if she knew it – though she and Daryl didn't keep a scale anywhere in the trailer.

She lifted her head when Daryl came into the room and she gave him a small smile.

"I eat too many Hershey bars," she informed him and he smiled a little at that as he began to take off his clothes, getting himself ready for bed.

"Prob'ly could eat more of 'em," he replied.

She finished writing and set the journal down on the nightstand and scooted over so Daryl could slip in between the covers. The room was small and the double bed was pushed against the wall, Beth's spot being the one against the wall.

"Gotcha somethin'," he said as he sat up beside her and she noticed his fingers were closed around something, fisting something in his palm.

And when he opened it and let her see what he had, she couldn't help but gasp, her hands flying to her mouth. She stared at it for a moment, as if she wasn't entirely sure that she was actually seeing it, and then she lifted her eyes to him. He was staring at her and she knew him well enough to know that he was feeling nervous about this whole thing.

He glanced down to the small diamond ring in his palm and gave his shoulders a shrug. He lifted his eyes back to her. "Just thought it was somethin' you should have," he said almost in a mumble.

"It's beautiful," she told him in a soft voice and the way his shoulders almost immediately relaxed with her words, she knew he had been worried about that.

She gave him a soft smile and without another word, she held out her left hand. His own lips twitched a little and he took the ring, guiding it onto her third finger.

"Lil' loose," he noted as he was able to spin the band around. "Don't want you to lose it," he said as he still stared down at the ring rather than her.

Beth looked down to it, too, and felt her stomach flip in the way that it always did whenever Daryl did something like this; something completely sweet and unexpected – which he did more than people probably would have thought.

"I love it," she whispered and they lifted their eyes at the same time, looking at each other and she gave him the same soft smile.

"'m sorry it's not bigger," he mumbled, starting to look embarrassed but Beth cut that off right then and there and swooped in, pressing her lips to his.

"It's perfect," she whispered to him. "Thank you. You didn't have to get me this though, Daryl."

He shrugged his shoulders. "Jus' wanted you to have somethin'. Let people know this is official," he said.

She lifted her left hand to his cheek then and pressed her lips to his because she was overcome with such a sense of emotion, she didn't trust herself to speak right then, knowing that all of that emotion would spill out and she didn't want it to. Daryl had just given her an engagement ring and they were getting married and even if her tears were going to be the happiest tears that had ever fallen, they were still tears and tears had no business being anywhere near their home right now.

…

He wore a suit. He knew Beth didn't ask him to because she never would have expected it. But he had Rick help him and he went to the store to get himself a suit because he was only going to be getting married once in his life and he didn't want to look like a fucking slob when Beth probably made herself up to look like an angel.

There wasn't a whole lot of planning. Neither of them wanted it that way. He knew that if Beth had come up to him and told him that she wanted the kind of wedding that Annie had taken upon herself to start planning for them, he knew he would have agreed to it. He wouldn't have felt comfortable and he would have been worrying about the money the whole time but there wasn't too much he wouldn't do for Beth and he guessed everyone probably already knew that.

But Beth was just like him and didn't want anything like that. She just wanted him – for some reason he still didn't get but he had taught himself not to wonder about it anymore. He just went along with it and told himself her feelings weren't going to change towards him.

They planned for the ceremony on her pop's farm, underneath some apple trees, with a few of their friends invited. Maggie and Glenn. Shawn. Rosita. Merle and Annie and Hank. Rick and Lori with Carl and Judith. Dale, Axel and his wife, Martinez and his wife and Zach. And Carol and Sophia. Just people there who they liked.

Hank could barely walk yet so Merle carried him to stand beside Daryl and Daryl actually caught himself smiling as Hank kept slapping his hands on Merle's cheeks.

But then Beth started walking towards him in her white dress with her arm through her dad's and a bouquet of wildflowers in her hand and when their eyes locked, she burst into such a bright smile, he felt like it almost knocked him over. And then she was standing in front of him, her smile still in place, and she almost giggled.

"You're wearing a suit," she then told him as if he hadn't been aware of it himself.

He smirked a little. "Figured it was a good day to dress up," he said and she did giggle then, which made him smile a bit bigger.

Father Gabriel had begun but neither Daryl or Beth seemed to be listening to him as they continued looking at one another. He knew she wasn't getting a wedding dress for the day. She had said it more than once. It was her wedding, yes, but she wanted to get a dress she could more than once. It was a bit fancier than her other dresses she wore every other day – lace and with some beading. Daryl didn't know the first thing about clothes. He just knew she was the prettiest girl he had ever seen. Always had been. And now, they were in the middle her becoming his wife.

Her hair was worn down that day and there was a wreath of flowers in her hair and Daryl looked at her, convinced she was actually glowing. He wanted to tell her how pretty she looked that day but every word he could possibly say was lumped in his throat and he couldn't even hear anything around him as he looked at her.

But then Father Gabriel said his name and he realized that it was time to speak. He glanced to the man before back to Beth and he noticed that there was the slightest hint of nervousness in her eyes now; as if she thought he wasn't really going to marry her; as if she was waiting for him to change his mind and walk away right now.

He wondered if, after they were both wearing wedding rings, they would stop bracing themselves on the edge like this, always waiting for the other to just walk out.

"I do," he said loud and clear enough for Beth to hear, staring nowhere but in her eyes, and when she smiled, he smiled, too.

…

The reception, like the ceremony, was simple. Just a backyard barbecue with music playing from Shawn's stereo and a cake that Carol had baked for them. Just simple and easy and Daryl – his suit jacket long gone and his sleeves rolled to his elbows – kept looking down to the ring on his finger and then to Beth as she talked and smiled and laughed with the other people there. He had a few "Holy shit" moments throughout the rest of the evening.

Holy shit, he was married.

Holy shit, he was a husband.

Holy. Shit. He had a wife.

And not just any wife. He had _Beth_. He had had her for a year now but now, she was his wife and they were forever tied to one another now. Nothing was going to break that; break them. The way Daryl saw it, they had already been through enough shit to last them a lifetime and none of that had torn them apart. Daryl knew it had taken him a while to figure it out but now, he knew it was because they loved each other.

As corny and stupid as that sometimes sounded in his head, he knew that it was that. Love. Beth loved him no matter what and he loved her. Ninety pounds or nine hundred pounds. He wouldn't stop. Just as when Beth's fingers and lips brushed along all of the scars that marred his body – scars she had been the only one to ever see – he knew that she would never run away from what she saw or the man he was.

"Here," Rick approached him, handing him a bottle of beer with one for himself, and they stood side by side, drinking and looking over the party. "You doing alright?"

Daryl looked at him then. "Yeah," he answered but he knew it came out as more like a question because why would Rick ask him that? "You think I ain't?" He asked.

Rick shrugged and smiled a little. "Standing off by yourself instead of with Beth. Was just making sure," he answered.

Daryl took a sip of beer and his eyes found Beth again, now whispering and laughing with Rosita over something and Hank was in Beth's arms. "I'm a'right," Daryl said, still watching her, and as if she could feel his eyes, Beth turned her head then and her eyes immediately fell into his and she smiled the instant she saw him.

He gave her his own small smile and she then turned her head, returning to her conversation with Rosita, Hank now trying to pull the flowers off her head and Beth seamlessly and gently moved his hands down while never missing a beat in her conversation. She laughed then at whatever Rosita was saying and it was probably something dirty or sexual because he could see Beth's blush from across the yard.

Daryl looked back to Rick. "How's things goin' with Lori?" He asked though as Rick's best friend, Daryl knew more about the Grimes' marriage than he probably wanted to ever know.

Rick shrugged. "Could be better," was all he said even though they both knew that they were pretty much only staying together at this point for the kids.

Daryl was never going to mention to him that Rosita had a crush on him. It wouldn't matter. It looked like Rick wasn't going to be divorcing Lori anytime soon and it wasn't as if Rosita was the sort to make a move on a still married man. She may have been a flirt but Daryl had gotten to know her and he knew she wasn't that kind of girl. He wondered if Rick ever noticed the way she smiled at him though.

Instead, Daryl just nodded. "Thanks for comin' today," he said.

Rick smiled at him. "Of course, man." He slapped a hand on his back. "I couldn't be happier for you and Beth." He looked to Beth for a second before looking back to him. "So, what are you two gonna do now?" He asked.

Daryl took a sip of his beer and shook his head slightly. "Go home. Go to work tomorrow," he said because he didn't know what else they would do. They were married but nothing was really different in their lives. They were together and lived together and already had a life together.

They just had to keep going with that life.

…

Dale gave them the next couple of days off, telling them that even if they weren't going on a honeymoon, they were still newlyweds and should enjoy that time. And Daryl was always glad to be living in the middle of the woods, away from people, because Beth could get as loud as she wanted and the night of their wedding, she definitely seemed determined to break her previous noise record.

And afterwards, as they laid there, sweaty and panting and trying to catch their breaths, Daryl couldn't help but feel a little proud of himself for the way he had gotten her to scream. That whole male pride thing. Beth rested her head on his chest and Daryl sifted his fingers through her hair, his eyes caught sight of the ring now around his finger and he stared at it for a moment before he broke out into a small smile. As if Beth could feel it on his face, she lifted her head and looked up at him, smiling faintly when she saw his smile.

"What?" She wondered.

He shook his head. "Nothin'," he answered. "Jus' was a good day today."

She laughed softly at that and scooted herself up a bit so she could press a light kiss to his cheek. "The best day," she murmured against his skin.

They both fell quiet. Crickets chirped and an owl hooted somewhere outside. The rest of the world was blanketed with the silence that came with nighttime.

Daryl listened as Beth slowly began to drift off to sleep and his fingers continued combing through her hair. Despite the business of the day – and the business of their night – he didn't feel tired. He felt like his mind was racing a mile a minute and he couldn't get it to stop long enough for him to fall asleep, too.

He was thinking of Rick's question again.

 _"So, what are you two gonna do now?"_

And Daryl thought he had had the answer just hours earlier but now, lying there, feeling Beth's warm breath exhaling across his chest as she slept peacefully, he realized that he had absolutely no idea what to do. He didn't know the first thing about being a husband; how to have a wife or be married.

How had Merle figured it out? Merle had been more fucked up than him but he had a wife and a baby and a job and house and Merle was doing pretty well for himself by anyone's standards. Daryl had the house – trailer but that was a technicality – the job and now, he had the wife and he had no idea what the fuck to do now.

…

The day after their wedding was like any other day. It was Sunday and Beth pulled herself from the bed to take a shower and to get herself ready to go to service and Daryl laid there, watching as she came back into the bedroom, a towel wrapped around her body and another rubbing through her hair.

"Wan' me to come with you?" He asked.

She smiled at him from over her shoulder before looking at herself in the mirror and picking up her comb on the dresser. "You can if you like. It's up to you."

Daryl laid there for another moment and listened as she began humming a song to herself. He usually went hunting on Sundays, spending hours on end out in the woods but at the moment, he and Beth didn't need any meat. The refrigerator was crammed to the brim with leftovers from their wedding barbecue and Daryl loved to hunt but he only did so when the food was needed. And he loved being out in the woods by himself but he felt this need to stick with Beth today because he was a husband now and isn't that what husbands and wives did? They stuck together?

When he pulled himself out of bed with a grunt and walked past her for the bathroom, he could see the corners of her mouth upturned in a small smile.

…

She knew it wasn't his favorite thing to do. The pews were too hard and the church was too hot and Father Gabriel talked too much. But she was happy he had come with her that morning – even if she could feel his embarrassment from beside her when Father Gabriel congratulated the newly wedded couple after his sermon and the others in the congregation echoed the sentiment.

After service, Daryl stood beside her as people came up to them to congratulate them and give well wishes and Beth smiled and thanked them and answered questions about the ceremony that some had. A few asked if she and Daryl would start on a family right away and though those questions made the back of her neck pricked, she managed to just keep smiling and say that she and Daryl wanted it to be just them for a while.

She would look up at Daryl occasionally and she knew he was uncomfortable with so much attention on him but he didn't leave her side and she slid her hand into his, twining their fingers together.

"What now?" He asked as they finally headed towards their truck.

"Brunch at daddy's," she said as it was the Sunday tradition. "You don't have to come though, Daryl. You can go to the woods. I know you would much rather be in the woods right now," she said as she smiled up at him and he frowned down at her.

"You don't wan' me comin'?" He asked and there was something about his expression that made her purse her lips together.

He looked so confused and adorable and she felt laughter bubbling up in her because something was going on in his head but she couldn't figure out what.

"Of course you can come. If you want," she said and she stepped into him, slipping her arms around his waist. "But on Sundays, I go to my daddy's and you go to the woods. It's what we always do and I don't know why we would do it differently."

Daryl stared down at her, his eyes intent as if studying her, and his brow was furrowed as he was clearly thinking about what she said.

"A'right," he finally said with a nod but still seemed unsure. "If that's what you say."

She smiled. "It is. We're married now but we don't have to spend every second together. I think even we would get sick of each other if we did."

It looked like he wanted to smile at that. "Maybe I'll go with you this one time. Help with cleanin' up from yesterday. Thank your pops for everythin' he did for us."

Beth smiled wider because she really wouldn't have minded either way what he did but she was very glad that he had decided to come with her.

…

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 **Thank you very much for reading and please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**I know it says this story is complete but I got the idea for this and I decided to just add it onto this story since it's another part of _Cornerstone_ instead of creating a whole new one-shot.**

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…

Their life together didn't change after the wedding – not that she was expecting it to. They went to work and came home to their trailer and on Sundays, she went to church and he went hunting and every Thursday, they went to his brother's for dinner. It was the same as life for them had always been and Beth found a part of herself actually relieved because for the briefest moment, she had thought, for some reason, that everything would be different now that they wore wedding rings and shared the same last name.

"Hey," Daryl stepped into the office at lunchtime when the other mechanics cleared out of the garage and it was usually just Beth and Daryl who stayed behind.

"Hi," Beth smiled up at him, still sitting at her desk.

"You wanna go somewhere for lunch today?" He asked, sitting down in the chair across from her and when she looked at him, raising an eyebrow, he smirked. "Kind of sick of bologna sandwiches. Figured nothin' wrong with changin' things up."

"Alright," she gave her head a nod and reached into the top drawer where she kept the keys for the garage.

Outside, she made sure the front office door was locked and the bay doors were closed for the hour and she climbed behind Daryl on his motorcycle. She didn't ask where they were going but she wasn't surprised when he took them to the Chinese all-you-can-eat buffet in town. They had a five dollar lunch special and Daryl was certainly one of those people who got his money's worth.

Inside, after being shown to a table, they ordered drinks – Coke for Daryl and water for Beth – and then Daryl headed straight for the buffet. He loaded his plate with the chicken and beef options and Beth chose the vegetable fried rice and Lo Mein noodles as well as a cup of the egg drop soup. She remembered the first time Daryl had taken her here – on what was their sixth date though Daryl had insisted it wasn't a date because he had to spend more than five dollars on her. She had been so self-conscious, sitting there, convinced Daryl would take one look at her plate and tell her to go get more food so she could eat more.

But he never said a word and she was always so grateful to him that he understood. She was still sick but she was definitely better and even if she was completely healthy, there was no way she would be able to eat the amount of food that Daryl ate when they came to the buffet without making herself sick. They had two very different stomachs and Beth would never be able to eat the amount of food he did.

He always ate as if he was starving and deep down, Beth knew it was because when he was a child, he had never gotten enough to eat and as an adult, his brain had conditioned him into eating as much as he could while he could. She never commented on it though. Even if they were married, there were still certain topics that were almost considered taboo and Daryl's childhood was certainly one of them.

Even as his wife, she felt as if there were some things that just weren't her business until Daryl decided to make them her business.

"So, I was thinking that Saturday after work, we could go to the grocery store. I've been working on a list," she said.

Daryl nodded, chewing a mouthful of beef and broccoli. "Sounds good," he replied once he had swallowed. "And I know Thursday's usually our night but Merle was wonderin' if we wanted to go over for a Saturday night cookout."

"Of course," Beth answered with a smile and head nod. "Maybe we can pick Hank up a little something from the store before we go," she then suggested.

"You spoil 'im," Daryl smirked a little but Beth just shrugged.

She wasn't going to deny it because there was no reason, too, when they both knew it to be the truth. She definitely did spoil Hank Dixon but she couldn't help it. He was her nephew and she was his godmother and she loved him to death. Neither Shawn or Maggie had children yet and there was no way she would ever be able to have children of her own. She liked having a baby in her life who she could buy adorable clothes and toys for.

They had talked about it once – she and Daryl – before they got married about how she would probably never be able to have children of their own. It was something that she accepted because she had no one to blame but herself for it and it was something she had come to terms with and Daryl had honestly said that he didn't want kids anyway so it didn't matter to him whether she could have any or not. And Beth believed him because Daryl Dixon was never one to tell lies and if he told her he didn't want kids, of course she believed him.

They never talked about it again after that initial conversation. There really wasn't a point to it. This was the way things would be and as long Beth had Daryl, she really didn't need to have children. She knew some people wouldn't be able to believe that. She was a woman. _Of course_ she should want to have children and she had – when she was younger. When her mother was still alive and she was still eating and had all sorts of dreams for herself that kids usually had for themselves.

But life happened and she changed along with everything else changing around her and she was definitely a different person than she was when she was a younger girl. And now, just because she was a woman, that didn't mean that she had to want children or have children to have her life be complete. She had a home and a job and a husband who she loved and who loved her more than anything. She was pretty sure her life was already as near to complete as it could be.

Daryl got up to get his second plate of food as Beth still worked on her noodles and when he returned, he had brought back a small plate for her with a couple pieces of Crab Rangoon, knowing that she usually got that if she had room to eat them.

"I think Annie's pregnant again," Daryl commented as he sat down again.

"Already?" Beth couldn't help but be surprised. Hank had just turned one the month before. "Why do you think that?"

Daryl shrugged. "Just been payin' attention to what Merle says. He's past fifty and Annie's almost forty. Think they want 'em while they can still have 'em."

"Well," she said after a moment of thinking that over. "I hope they are then. They're amazing parents."

Daryl smirked at that. "Yeah," he agreed but she knew he couldn't really believe it. Not about Annie being a good mom but about Merle being a good dad. It wasn't as if either of them had had a shining example of what a good dad was while growing up and for many years of his adult life, Merle had made his fair share of mistakes, Daryl usually right there along with him.

But then Merle had been sentenced to prison and it was exactly what both needed. Merle straightened himself out while behind bars and Daryl straightened himself outside of them and now, Beth liked to tease them that they were both such upright citizens – and Merle always frowned at that as if she had insulted him somehow.

After finishing their lunch and collecting their fortune cookies, they climbed back onto Daryl's motorcycle and headed back to the garage.

"Someone is thinking highly of you right now," Beth read from the slip of paper once she had cracked her cookie open.

Daryl smirked. "Don't look at me."

And she giggled, which made him smile, and he framed her face between his hands and he gave her a kiss before leaving the office and heading back to his bay and Beth settled herself back behind her desk, munching on her cookie.

…

They had a grill in the backyard but it was hardly ever used, Merle, instead, choosing to cook over the fire pit they had set up instead. On Saturday night, Annie had prepared barbecue chicken and put Merle in charge of cooking it with Daryl's help and while they did that, Annie and Beth were in the kitchen, cooking the corn cobs and putting the salad together though the Dixon men never ate salad.

Hank Dixon was sitting on the kitchen floor, wearing nothing but a diaper because it was a sticky night and the air conditioner wasn't working at the moment, playing with his plastic dinosaur toys – his personal favorite.

And once everything was ready, they sat down at the picnic table on the back patio and Hank sat in Daryl's lap because he always insisted on eating with Uncle Daryl when Daryl and Beth were over.

"So, Merle and I just found out a few days ago," Annie began and Beth and Daryl already knew what she was going to say but they gave her their full attention. "And I'm about eight weeks pregnant," she informed them both with a wide smile.

"Annie, that is so fantastic! Congratulations!" Beth got up to go around the table and she bent down, wrapping her arms around her sister-in-law's shoulders in a tight hug.

"Congratulations," Daryl smiled at his older brother and Merle smirked in response.

"Got some strong swimmers, that's for sure," he grinned and Annie slapped his arm.

Beth sat back down beside Daryl and reached over, poking Hank playfully in the stomach and the baby giggled. "And you are going to be the best big brother," she smiled and Hank gave a wide grin as if he understood perfectly.

The rest of the meal was spent with Daryl and Merle talking about deer season that fall and maybe going into the woods for the whole weekend and Beth and Annie talked about baby things. Annie hoped they had another boy so they could reuse many of Hank's baby things but she certainly wouldn't be opposed to a baby girl and Beth smiled and asked her about names and due dates and if she had sickness yet.

Beth could feel Daryl's eyes watching her occasionally and she knew what he was thinking. She didn't say anything and he didn't ask but she would look back at him and give him a small, reassuring smile. He was a hard man to read but somehow, she had become the one person in this world who was always able to read him better than anyone else. She knew he would probably ask once they had gotten home and were alone once more even though she knew he knew he didn't have to ask that.

Once they got back to their trailer in the woods, Daryl stayed outside to smoke his last cigarette of the night and Beth went inside to get herself ready for bed. Their lamb, Harvey, was living back on the farm with Hershel and had been gone for almost a month now. He was fully grown now and no longer needed their care like he had when he was still a little lamb. Besides, Hershel had acres of pasture for the sheep to roam and Daryl was nervous about wolves in the woods, attacking him. Without him baaing though, it sounded too quiet to Daryl even with the owls hooting and the crickets chirping.

He made sure to fully extinguish the cigarette butt before going inside, closing and locking the door behind him. He supposed he never needed to lock it. He and Beth lived in the middle of nowhere in the woods and hardly anyone ever came around here but it was better to be safe than sorry – especially with Beth inside.

She was in bed, wearing one of his flannel shirts as she usually did to sleep in because it didn't matter how humid it was outside. Beth was always cold. She sat up, writing in her food journal, taking note of everything she had eaten that day and Daryl stripped down to his boxers, making sure his clothes were picked up from the floor and put into the hamper and then he crawled into bed beside her.

Her hair was thrown up in a ponytail and Daryl couldn't help but look at the pale expanse of her neck exposed to his eyes. He wondered if she knew how much her pale skin turned him on. She probably did. Beth knew most things about him and hardly seemed surprised when he did decide to tell her something.

He leaned in and was unable to stop himself from pressing his lips to the side of her neck. He felt her smiling as she continued to write and his lips moved towards the corner of her jaw. It was always one of those sensitive spots for her and now, just sucking on it lightly for a second, he got her to moan softly.

"Daryl," she whispered his name, already sounding a little out of breath. "I have to finish this," she told him even as she turned a little bit more towards him.

And Daryl knew she had to. It was important for her to write in that journal every day and he didn't want her to skip something just because of him. There was a support meeting twice a month in a church about twenty minutes away that they went to together. Beth had told him that he didn't have to but he didn't even discuss it with her. If she was going, he was going. Beth never spoke at these meetings – just sat and listened to others share their stories of eating disorders – and Daryl wondered if she would ever be comfortable enough to talk of her own. Daryl knew most of the facts of what she had gone through but he knew there were a few things she kept to herself and never talked with him about. And he didn't force her. He had his own secret stories he would probably never tell her and just because they were married, that didn't mean that she couldn't keep a couple of things from him.

He pulled his head back and watched as she began to write again – writing a little faster now – and he wondered if he should ask the question that had been on his mind since Merle and Annie made their announcement. He knew she already knew what he wanted to ask her and he already knew what she was going to say and yet, he really wanted to ask. Maybe to just confirm what he pretty much already knew.

"You okay?" He finally asked, his voice sounding a little gruff, and he cleared his throat. Beth finished writing and closed the journal, handing the notebook and pen to him so he could place it on the nightstand beside the bed. "With Merle and Annie?" He clarified and she looked at him, her eyes soft and her smile matching.

"Of course I am," she smiled at him. "I'm so happy for them."

Daryl nodded his head once, still looking at her. It didn't bother him. It never had and he knew it never would. He didn't need kids of his own. Didn't even want them. And Beth was in agreement but sometimes, he found himself watching her when they were around Hank, looking for the slightest hint of sadness on her face. He never saw any and he knew that he wouldn't. Beth was fine with the cards they had been dealt in this life and he didn't know what they would do if she wasn't. He guessed they could always adopt but that was a long and expensive process and they didn't really have the money for something like that. Same with a surrogate.

But she always looked so fine and Daryl didn't know why he always felt so relieved when he knew all along that she was fine. She always seemed as happy with their life as a person could be and Daryl knew that personally, he was damn happy, too.

"Excited about being an uncle again?" She asked, the smile still on her face and she adjusted herself, scooting down so she was lying down, looking up at him.

Daryl propped himself up on his side beside her. "Yeah," he answered after a minute. "Kind of still gettin' used to Hank bein' Merle's. It'll be weird as hell seein' him jugglin' two kids."

"Think about how much fun it will be to watch," Beth said with a near giggle in her voice and Daryl smirked at that, shaking his head, agreeing with her completely.

She reached up and her hand found the back of his head and she pulled him down, Daryl more than ready to kiss her and put his body on top of hers.

…

Daryl and Beth were Hank's godparents and when Ricky was born, they were made his godparents as well. Annie was a church-going woman and Merle had started attending services while locked up and both were in agreement that their boys would be raised, going to church, too.

Ricky was baptized after service one Sunday and Beth held him in his arms, smiling as he let out a quiet cry as the water hit his forehead. And afterwards, they had friends over at their house for a Sunday lunch to celebrate.

"You alright?" Merle asked Daryl as he stood in the backyard with Rick and he came to hand them each a can of beer.

Merle was more observant than people would usually think. Not as observant as his baby brother but he was far from an idiot and Daryl had Beth had been married for a year now and Daryl had mentioned once about kids and never having them and Merle knew that Daryl was probably just fine with that and Beth seemed fine, too, but he still couldn't help but ask.

He figured that if Daryl and Beth ever wanted a kid of their own, Merle could always give them one of his.

Daryl nodded, swallowing down his guzzle of beer. "'course I am," he answered in a way that made Merle feel like he was stupid for having even wondered if he was.

Daryl saw Beth standing across the yard, talking with her pops, Hershel, and Annie, who was holding baby Ricky in her arms. And it was as if she knew that Daryl was looking at her because Beth suddenly turned her head and found his eyes immediately. She gave him a happy, bright smile and Daryl had no problem giving her his own smile in return.

…

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 **Thank you very much for reading!**


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